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The Vetiver System has many agricultural uses for: soil and water conservation, soil moisture improvement, groundwater recharge, recycling soil nutrients, pest control, mulch, forage, clean up of agricultural contaminated waste water, protection of farm infrastructure (canals, drains, roads, and building sites). The Vetiver System will reduce soil loss from farm land by as much as 90% and will reduce rainfall runoff by as much as 70%, thus significantly increasing the effective rainfall available to crops. The impact goes further - groundwater is recharged to the extent that ephemeral streams flow longer and stronger, wetlands are rejuvenated, wild life habitat is improved and soil fertility improves - resulting in increased crop yields that have been measured as much as 40%. More data and information at TVNI archives:
Agriculture and Crop Production
Soil and Water Conservation


"Vetiver - A Farmer's Friend" in Spanish with English subtitles has now been audio dubbed in Hindi (maintaining the English subtitles). Accessible at: https://youtu.be/-nvyJ9fu-d8
Agricultural related presentations:

 

Vetiver grass for pest control in adjacent crops. Vetiver hosts many different insects 99% of which do no damage to the plant. On the other hand many of those hosted insects such as parastoidal wasps destroy leaf sucking insects on adjacent crops. Also vetiver is a dead end trap crop for stem borer of rice, sorgum and maize.

grapes

In South Africa's Western Cape vetiver is being grown between rows of grapes to suspress weeds (when cut as mulch - 4 times a year), conserve moisture, recycle nutients, improve organic matter, and stop and erosion. Reports from Vietnam, Spain, and Italy alsssso show benefits to grapes from vetiver planting. We have seen in Thailand and Vietnam that where perennial plants have been grown in close association with vetiver the plants develop a positive symbiotic relationship with vetiver and greatly benefit from the mychoriza activity associated with the vetiver roots and the improveement of avaaailable soil moisture. Photo credit: Anelia Marais.

Tulube man

"The Vetiver Man of Tulube" - a farmer from western Ethiopia who has in this year of dought obtained four times the average yield of maize using vetiver hedgerows supported by other improved crop practices. Vetiver hedgerows were key in that they enabled efficient use of rainfall and soil fertility improvements. Read the full story. A pdf file of this story can be downloaded.

 

Climate Change in Ethiopia

Ethiopian Farmers Show the way on using the Vetiver System for Sustainable Land Use Practices and a hedge against climate change. Read more....

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Vetiver System for Agriculture and Related Uses [including soil and water conservation]
This technical handbook was extracted from "The Vetiver System - A Technical Reference Manual" by Paul Truong, Tran Tan Van and Elise Pinners.

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The Vetiver System for Agriculture: Download The Vetiver System for Agriculture - Complete handbook on how VS can be used for agriculture. Includes soil erosion control, other agricultural uses, and handicrafts; or buy hard cover at Amazon.com

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The Vetiver System for Soil and Water Conservation: Download the Vetiver System for Soil and Water Conservation, a complete handbook on how VS can be used for erosion control. This book is a modification of John Greenfield's "Vetiver Grass - A Hedge Against Erosion" and contains colored images to match the original line drawings that depict detailed application of the technology; or buy hard cover at Amazon.com

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Vetiver as Animal Feed: A short photo essay by Paul Truong showing images of vetiver as an animal feed source and those that eat the grass. x See More

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Vietnam Erosion Control Trials: Vetiver System was tested with good results for soil conservation resulting in increased crop yields (cassava and peanuts). x Read More

Fruit tree surrounded by vetiver.

L’utilization de Vétiver dans l’agriculture et l’arboriculture: By Naaj Baal
An excellent french translation that overviews the Vetiver System's many practical uses. x Read More

congo vetiver congo vetiver pic month

Alain Ndona; is a Vetiver Systems specialist working in Congo DRC. He has brought quality work to on farm vetiver applications and for slope stabilization of highways and urban ravines. Africa needs persons like Alain if the continent is to successfully deal with climate change, declining water availability, and accelerating erosion.

You can read more about Alain's work in the attached files. x File 1 x File 2 x File3 x French translation

Fiji vetiver

Vetiver Grass - The Hedge Against Erosion: A technology for soil and water conservation and embankment stabilization
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VIDEO

This video was first prepared in 1995 and is a voice over slide production describing how vetiver grass technology works. Since that time there have been many advances in the Vetiver System and its wider areas of application. However the basic technology remains very much the same, and the video provides a useful entry point for a new user. (28 mins)